US STOCKS-S&P 500 edges to record closing high as Fed minutes parsed

Global Blue Holding

19/02/2025 21:00

* 
      Nikola falls after filing for bankruptcy protection 
    

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      Analog Devices gains after Q1 results beat estimates
    

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      January housing starts plunge
    

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      Fed minutes reveal concern over tariff effects
    

  
 (Updates to market close)
    By Stephen Culp
       NEW YORK, Feb 19 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks ended modestly
higher on Wednesday and the S&P  500 notched its second straight
all-time closing high as investors scrutinized the minutes from
the Federal Reserve's January policy meeting and digested the
latest tariff announcements from U.S. President Donald Trump.
    At the Fed's January policy meeting, the U.S. central bank
left its key interest rate unchanged. The minutes show
policymakers expressed concern about stubborn inflation and the
potential effect of Trump's policy proposals, particularly
tariffs, on their efforts to bring price growth down to their
target.
        "There was some discussion (in the minutes) that there
may be some economic slowing ahead," said Paul Nolte, senior
wealth adviser and market strategist at Murphy & Sylvest in
Elmhurst, Illinois. "Maybe that's giving investors some thought
that the Fed could cut rates. It's still on the table."
  
        "That said, (the Fed's) not willing to do anything until
they get a little bit more clarity as to what the tariffs look
like," Nolte added. "So from that perspective (it's) a wait and
see."    
    Trump announced on Tuesday he would impose tariffs "in the
neighborhood of 25%" on autos, semiconductors and
pharmaceuticals, the latest in a series of measures that have
raised concerns over the consequences of a global trade war.
    "I think people are starting to see it as a bargaining chip
or bluster, more bark than bite," Nolte said.  
    The Commerce Department said housing starts tumbled by 9.8%
in January, a plunge attributed to soft demand, elevated
mortgage rates and a spate of unusually frigid weather.
    Housing stocks  .HGX  were underperformers, dropping 2.1%.
    According to preliminary data, the S&P 500
 .SPX  gained 14.54 points, or 0.24%, to end at 6,144.12 points,
while the Nasdaq Composite  .IXIC  gained 14.99 points, or
0.07%, to 20,055.72. The Dow Jones Industrial Average
 .DJI  rose 71.12 points, or 0.16%, to 44,627.46.
    Fourth-quarter earnings season is approaching the finish
line, and 74% of the S&P 500 constituents have posted
better-than-expected results, according to LSEG.
    Analysts now see fourth-quarter S&P 500 earnings growth of
15.3% year-on-year, a significant improvement over the 9.6%
estimate at the beginning of the year, according to LSEG.
    Electric truck maker Nikola  NKLA.O  plunged in the wake of
its filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
    Specialty chemicals company Celanese  CE.N  tumbled after
reporting a quarterly loss.
    Shares of Shift4  FOUR.N  slid following its fourth-quarter
results and on news that the payments processor has agreed to
buy Global Blue  GB.N  in a deal valued at $2.5 billion.
    Shares of Global Blue surged.
    Analog Devices  ADI.O  advanced after beating quarterly
profit and revenue estimates.
    

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US stocks trail global peers so far this year    https://reut.rs/3X8drRV
Dot plot    https://reut.rs/4k8zsdo
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 (Reporting by Stephen Culp; Additional reporting by Shashwat
Chauhan and Sukriti Gupta in Bengaluru; Editing by Richard
Chang)
 ((stephen.culp@thomsonreuters.com; 646-223-6076))